Method for accounting information handling in an interworking

ABSTRACT

A method for accounting information handling in an interworking is provided. A method for processing accounting information by a gateway device includes sending an accounting request message to a first electronic device, and receiving a response message from a first electronic device, the response message responsive to the accounting request message. The accounting request message is related to a communications device attached to the first network. The method also includes processing accounting information. The processing is based on the response message, the gateway device and the first electronic device are part of the first network, the communications device is accessing a second network through the first network, and the communications device has a subscription only with the second network.

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.12/690,734, filed on Jan. 20, 2010, entitled, “Method for AccountingInformation Handling in an Interworking,” which application is herebyincorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to wireless communications, andmore particularly to a method for accounting information handling in aninterworking.

BACKGROUND

As wireless communications systems continue to evolve and improve, itmay be common for a service area to be served by multiple wirelesscommunications systems as service providers upgrade equipment whilekeeping older equipment operational for compatibility purposes. When two(or more) wireless communications systems serve a common service areaand allow a communications device to access both wireless communicationssystems, the result may be referred to as an interworking.

An accounting problem may arise when a WiMAX network is interworkingwith a non-WiMAX network, such as the Third Generation PartnershipProject (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE), with the WiMAX networkproviding access to the non-WiMAX network since the WiMAX network maynot specify or support all of the accounting methods supported in thenon-WiMAX network. Additionally, a format of accounting messages fromthe WiMAX network may not be the same as those supported in thenon-WiMAX network. In general, a first network providing access to asecond network may be referred to as an access network.

Furthermore, the non-WiMAX network may generate accounting informationof its own and may choose to ignore accounting information from theWiMAX network. Therefore, accounting information generated by the WiMAXnetwork and injected into both the WiMAX network and the non-WiMAXnetwork may increase the amount of network traffic, thereby potentiallyreducing overall network performance by increasing network overhead.

SUMMARY

These and other problems are generally solved or circumvented, andtechnical advantages are generally achieved, by embodiments of a methodfor accounting information handling in an interworking.

In accordance with an embodiment, a method for processing accountinginformation by a gateway device is provided. The method includes sendingan accounting request message to a first electronic device, receiving aresponse message from the first electronic device, and processingaccounting information. The accounting request message is related to acommunications device attached to a first network, the response messageis responsive to the accounting request message, and the processing isbased on the response message. The gateway device and the firstelectronic device are part of the first network, the communicationsdevice is accessing a second network through the first network, and thecommunications device has a subscription only with the second network.

In accordance with another embodiment, a method for processingaccounting information by an authentication device is provided. Themethod includes receiving an accounting request message from a firstelectronic device, and sending a response message responsive to theaccounting request message to the first electronic device. Theaccounting request message is related to a communications deviceattached to a first network, and the authentication device and the firstelectronic device are part of the first network. The communicationsdevice is accessing a second network through the first network, and thecommunications device has a service subscription only with the secondnetwork.

In accordance with another embodiment, a method for processingaccounting information by a gateway device is provided. The methodincludes determining if a communications device is participating in aninterworking with a first network and a second network, stoppinggeneration of accounting information for the communications device ifthe communications device is participating in an interworking with thefirst network and the second network, and continuing to generateaccounting information for the communications device if thecommunications device is not participating in an interworking with thefirst network and the second network. The communications device isaccessing a second network through the first network, and thecommunications device has a subscription only with the second network.

An advantage of an embodiment is that accounting information andaccounting messages from a WiMAX network, wherein the WiMAX network isproviding access, are handled without impacting a 3GPP network andminimally impacting WiMAX performance.

A further advantage of an embodiment is that an existing parameter in anexisting message is used to control the handling of accountinginformation and accounting messages. Therefore, additions and/ormodifications to existing message formats and protocols are not needed.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technicaladvantages of the present invention in order that the detaileddescription of the embodiments that follow may be better understood.Additional features and advantages of the embodiments will be describedhereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. Itshould be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conceptionand specific embodiments disclosed may be readily utilized as a basisfor modifying or designing other structures or processes for carryingout the same purposes of the present invention. It should also berealized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructionsdo not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth inthe appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the embodiments, and the advantagesthereof, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a WiMAX-3GPP enhanced packet core (EPC)interworking;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a detailed view of a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking;

FIG. 3 a is a flow diagram of high level ASN-GW operations in generatingaccounting reports;

FIG. 3 b is a flow diagram of first ASN-GW operations in generatingaccounting reports for a mobile participating in a WiMAX-3GPP EPCinterworking;

FIG. 3 c is a flow diagram of second ASN-GW operations in generatingaccounting reports for a mobile participating in a WiMAX-3GPP EPCinterworking;

FIG. 3 d is a flow diagram of third ASN-GW operations in generatingaccounting reports for a mobile participating in a WiMAX-3GPP EPCinterworking;

FIG. 4 a is a flow diagram of first WiMAX AAA proxy operations inhandling accounting reports from a ASN-GW for a mobile participating ina WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking; and

FIG. 4 b is a flow diagram of second WiMAX AAA proxy operations inhandling accounting reports from a ASN-GW for a mobile participating ina WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

The making and using of the embodiments are discussed in detail below.It should be appreciated, however, that the present invention providesmany applicable inventive concepts that can be embodied in a widevariety of specific contexts. The specific embodiments discussed aremerely illustrative of specific ways to make and use the invention, anddo not limit the scope of the invention.

The embodiments will be described in a specific context, namely aninterworking with a WiMAX compliant network serving as an access networkand a 3GPP LTE compliant network, where a mobile is using the WiMAXnetwork to access the 3GPP network. The invention may also be applied,however, to other interworkings, such as CDMA-LTE-A, HRPD-LTE,HRPD-LTE-A, CDMA2000-LTE, CDMA2000-LTE-A, CDMA-WiMAX, CDMA2000-WiMAX,CDMA-UMTS, CDMA2000-UMTS, WiMAX-LTE, WiMAX-LTE-A, UMTS-LTE, UMTS-LTE-A,and so on.

FIG. 1 illustrates a WiMAX-3GPP enhanced packet core (EPC) interworking100. As shown in FIG. 1, a mobile 105 may use a WiMAX compliant network110 to access a 3GPP compliant network 115. Through 3GPP compliantnetwork 115, mobile 105 may access information source 120, multimediaservice 121, content provider 122, and so forth. Mobile 105 may access3GPP compliant network 115 by first attaching to WiMAX compliant network110 and then passing authentication/authorization with 3GPP compliantnetwork 115.

Using WiMAX compliant network 110 to access 3GPP compliant network 115may mean that mobile 105 incurs access charges from both 3GPP compliantnetwork 115 and WiMAX compliant network 110. However, in a WiMAX-3GPPinterworking, mobile 105 may be assumed to have a service subscriptiononly with 3GPP compliant network 115.

Both 3GPP compliant network 115 and WiMAX compliant network 110 willgenerate accounting information for mobile 105. Accounting informationmay include information such as identity of mobile 105, accessstart/stop time, duration, service type, amount of data transferred, andso forth. The accounting information may be continuously generated whilemobile 105 is in an active session. Furthermore, depending on serviceagreements, WiMAX compliant network 110 may transmit accountinginformation to 3GPP compliant network 115 so that 3GPP compliant network115 may accurately charge mobile 105.

Since mobile 105 is operating through both 3GPP compliant network 115and WiMAX compliant network 110, the accounting information generated byWiMAX compliant network 110 may be redundant. Because the accountinginformation generated by WiMAX compliant network 110 may be redundant,the transmission of the accounting information to 3GPP compliant network115 may negatively impact performance of 3GPP compliant network 115 byincreasing network traffic, for example. Additionally, the generation ofredundant accounting information by WiMAX compliant network 110 may alsoimpact the performance of WiMAX compliant network 110.

FIG. 2 illustrates a detailed view of a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking 200.As discussed previously, in a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking scenario, amobile, such as mobile 205, is assumed to have a subscription to the3GPP compliant network, such as 3GPP compliant network 215, only. In the3GPP compliant network, a packet data network gateway (PDN-GW) 220 maygenerate accounting records along with user data records (UDR) for anyaccess technology, such as WiMAX, interworking with the 3GPP compliantnetwork.

Accounting records for a session using WiMAX access through a WiMAXcompliant network, such as WiMAX compliant network 210, may be generatedby PDN-GW 220 (located in the 3GPP compliant network). Therefore, thereis no need for any accounting information from the WiMAX compliantnetwork, even to keep track of billing information related to mobile205's use of the WiMAX compliant network.

However, in the WiMAX compliant network, an access service networkgateway (ASN-GW) 225 may be required to generate accounting records aspart of the WiMAX technical standards. ASN-GW 225 may generateaccounting records even if they are not necessary in a WiMAX-3GPP EPCinterworking scenario.

Typically, the accounting records generated by ASN-GW 225 may betransmitted to a WiMAX accounting/authentication/authorization (AAA)proxy 230, which may then transmit the accounting records to a 3GPP AAAserver 235. Because ASN-GW 225 may generate a significant number ofaccounting records in a long standing connection with mobile 205, thetransmission of the accounting records may consume a noticeable amountof available network resources in both the WiMAX compliant network andthe 3GPP compliant network. Furthermore, the generation of theaccounting records by ASN-GW 225 may increase the performancerequirements of ASN-GW 225, for example, increase memory usage,processing power, etc.

FIG. 3 a illustrates a flow diagram of high level ASN-GW operations 300in generating accounting reports. ASN-GW operations 300 may beindicative of operations occurring in an ASN-GW, such as ASN-GW 225, ofa WiMAX compliant network. ASN-GW operations 300 may occur when amobile, such as mobile 205, uses the WiMAX compliant network to access a3GPP compliant network. ASN-GW operations 300 may occur while the ASN-GWis in a normal operating mode and while the WiMAX compliant networkparticipates in a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking with the 3GPP compliantnetwork.

ASN-GW operations 300 may begin with the ASN-GW sending a message to aWiMAX AAA proxy (block 305). The message sent to the WiMAX AAA proxy mayinclude an indication indicating that the message is an accountingrequest. The message may also include other indications.

The WiMAX AAA proxy, upon receipt of the message, may send back aresponse to the ASN-GW. The response message may or may not contain anindicator that is pertinent to the accounting request sent to the WiMAXAAA proxy. The ASN-GW may then receive the response from the WiMAX AAAproxy (block 307) and take action based on the response to theaccounting request message (block 309). The ASN-GW may take differentactions based on the response to the accounting request that it sent tothe WiMAX AAA proxy. Several different actions that the ASN-GW may takeare discussed in detail below. ASN-GW operations 300 may then terminate.

FIG. 3 b illustrates a flow diagram of first ASN-GW operations 325 ingenerating accounting reports for a mobile participating in a WiMAX-3GPPEPC interworking. ASN-GW operations 325 may be indicative of operationsoccurring in an ASN-GW, such as ASN-GW 225, of a WiMAX compliantnetwork. ASN-GW operations 325 may occur when a mobile, such as mobile205, uses the WiMAX compliant network to access a 3GPP compliantnetwork. ASN-GW operations 325 may occur while the ASN-GW is in a normaloperating mode and while the WiMAX compliant network participates in aWiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking with the 3GPP compliant network.

ASN-GW operations 325 may begin with the ASN-GW sending a message to aWiMAX AAA proxy (block 330). The message sent to the WiMAX AAA proxy mayinclude an indication indicating that the message is an accountingrequest. The message may also include other indications.

The WiMAX AAA proxy, upon receipt of the message may send back aresponse to the ASN-GW. The response message may contain an indicationindicating that accounting should be turned off (e.g., “accountingoff”). According to an embodiment, the indication may be set to aspecified value, for example, eight (8), to indicate that accountingshould be turned off. Although the discussion focuses on a specificvalue for the indication, e.g., eight, any value for the indication maybe used as long as the value has not already been reserved to indicateother indicators. Therefore, the discussion of the value eight shouldnot be construed as being limiting to either the spirit or the scope ofthe embodiments. Additionally, the response message may contain otherindications.

The ASN-GW may then receive the response message from the WiMAX AAAproxy (block 332). The ASN-GW may check to determine if there is anindication indicating that it should turn off generating accountingreports (block 334). If the response includes such an indication, thenthe ASN-GW may stop generating and sending accounting reports (block336) and ASN-GW operations 325 may then terminate. If the response doesnot include such an indication, then the ASN-GW may continue generatingand sending accounting reports and ASN-GW operations 325 may thenterminate.

FIG. 3 c illustrates a flow diagram of second ASN-GW operations 350 ingenerating accounting reports for a mobile participating in a WiMAX-3GPPEPC interworking. ASN-GW operations 350 may be indicative of operationsoccurring in an ASN-GW, such as ASN-GW 225, of a WiMAX compliantnetwork. ASN-GW operations 350 may occur when a mobile, such as mobile205, uses the WiMAX compliant network to access a 3GPP compliantnetwork. ASN-GW operations 350 may occur while the ASN-GW is in a normaloperating mode and while the WiMAX compliant network participates in aWiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking with the 3GPP compliant network.

ASN-GW operations 350 may begin with the ASN-GW sending a message to aWiMAX AAA proxy (block 355). The message sent to the WiMAX AAA proxy mayinclude an indication indicating that the message is an accountingrequest. The message may also include other indications.

The WiMAX AAA proxy, upon receipt of the message, may send back aresponse to the ASN-GW. The response message may not contain anindication indicating that accounting should be turned off “accountingoff,” as discussed previously. However, the response message may containother indications.

The ASN-GW may then receive the response message from the WiMAX AAAproxy (block 357). The ASN-GW may check to determine if there is anindication indicating that it should turn off generating accountingreports (block 359). If the response does include such an indication,then the ASN-GW may stop generating and sending accounting reports(block 361) and ASN-GW operations 350 may then terminate. If theresponse does not include such an indication, then the ASN-GW maycontinue generating and sending accounting reports and ASN-GW operations350 may then terminate.

FIG. 3 d illustrates a flow diagram of third ASN-GW operations 375 ingenerating accounting reports for a mobile participating in a WiMAX-3GPPEPC interworking. ASN-GW operations 375 may be indicative of operationsoccurring in an ASN-GW, such as ASN-GW 225, of a WiMAX compliantnetwork. ASN-GW operations 375 may occur when a mobile, such as mobile205, uses the WiMAX compliant network to access a 3GPP compliantnetwork. ASN-GW operations 375 may occur while the ASN-GW is in a normaloperating mode and while the WiMAX compliant network participates in aWiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking with the 3GPP compliant network.

ASN-GW operations 375 may begin with the ASN-GW performing a check todetermine if it is operating in an interworking with a 3GPP EPC (block380). According to an embodiment, the ASN-GW may be able to determinethat it is operating in an interworking by examining message trafficoriginating from the mobile, for example, the ASN-GW may examine messagetype of message traffic from the mobile, connection types requested bymessage traffic from the mobile, an intended destination of the messagetraffic from the mobile, and so on.

If the ASN-GW is operating in an interworking with a 3GPP EPC, then theASN-GW may stop generating accounting records for the mobile (block382). Additionally, if the ASN-GW has already generated accountingrecords for the mobile, then the ASN-GW may suppress transmission of thegenerated accounting records if they have not already been sent.According to an embodiment, the ASN-GW may stop generating accountingrecords for the mobile only for connections involving the mobile and the3GPP EPC. For example, if the mobile has several active connections andat least one of them does not involve the 3GPP EPC, then the ASN-GW maystill continue to generate accounting records for the connection(s) notinvolving the 3GPP EPC. ASN-GW operations 375 may then terminate.

If the ASN-GW is not operating in an interworking with a 3GPP EPC, thenthe ASN-GW may continue generating accounting records for the mobile andASN-GW operations 375 may then terminate.

FIG. 4 a illustrates a flow diagram of first WiMAX AAA proxy operations400 in handling accounting reports from a ASN-GW for a mobileparticipating in a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking. WiMAX AAA proxyoperations 400 may be indicative of operations occurring in a WiMAX AAAproxy, such as WiMAX AAA proxy 230, of a WiMAX compliant network. WiMAXAAA proxy operations 400 may occur when a mobile, such as mobile 205,uses the WiMAX compliant network to access a 3GPP compliant network.WiMAX AAA proxy operations 400 may occur while the WiMAX AAA proxy is ina normal operating mode and while the WiMAX compliant networkparticipates in a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking with the 3GPP compliantnetwork.

WiMAX AAA proxy operations 400 may begin with the WiMAX AAA proxyreceiving a message from an ASN-GW, wherein the message includes anindication indicating that the message is an accounting request (block405). The message received by the WiMAX AAA proxy may also include otherindications.

In response to the received message with the indication indicating thatthe message is an accounting request, the WiMAX AAA proxy may send backto the ASN-GW a response message that contains an indication indicatingthat accounting should be turned off (e.g., “accounting off”) (block410). According to an embodiment, the indication may be set to aspecified value, for example, eight (8), to indicate accounting off.Although the discussion focuses on a specific value for the indication,e.g., eight, any value for the indication may be used as long as thevalue has not already been reserved to indicate other indicators.Therefore, the discussion of the value eight should not be construed asbeing limiting to either the spirit or the scope of the embodiments.Additionally, the response message may contain other indications. Theresponse message may also contain other indications.

If the WiMAX AAA proxy continues to receive messages from the ASN-GWcontaining accounting records, the WiMAX AAA proxy may discard theaccounting records (block 415). WiMAX AAA proxy operations 400 may thenterminate.

FIG. 4 b illustrates a flow diagram of second WiMAX AAA proxy operations450 in handling accounting reports from a ASN-GW for a mobileparticipating in a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking. WiMAX AAA proxyoperations 450 may be indicative of operations occurring in a WiMAX AAAproxy, such as WiMAX AAA proxy 230, of a WiMAX compliant network. WiMAXAAA proxy operations 450 may occur when a mobile, such as mobile 205,uses the WiMAX compliant network to access a 3GPP compliant network.WiMAX AAA proxy operations 450 may occur while the WiMAX AAA proxy is ina normal operating mode and while the WiMAX compliant networkparticipates in a WiMAX-3GPP EPC interworking with the 3GPP compliantnetwork.

WiMAX AAA proxy operations 450 may begin with the WiMAX AAA proxyreceiving a message from an ASN-GW, wherein the message includes anindication indicating that the message is an accounting request (block455). The message received by the WiMAX AAA proxy may also include otherindications.

In response to the received message with the indication indicating thatthe message is an accounting request, the WiMAX AAA proxy may send backto the ASN-GW a response message that contains no indication related toaccounting (block 460). Although the response message may not contain anindication related to accounting, the response message may contain otherindications.

If the WiMAX AAA proxy receives accounting records from the ASN-GW, thenthe WiMAX AAA proxy may optionally convert the accounting records into a3GPP format and send the converted accounting records to a 3GPP AAAserver (block 465). Conversion of the accounting records from the WiMAXformat into the 3GPP format may include placing sufficient informationinto the 3GPP formatted accounting records for correlation purposes.WiMAX AAA proxy operations 450 may then terminate.

Although the embodiments and their advantages have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, thescope of the present application is not intended to be limited to theparticular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, compositionof matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. Asone of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from thedisclosure of the present invention, processes, machines, manufacture,compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing orlater to be developed, that perform substantially the same function orachieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodimentsdescribed herein may be utilized according to the present invention.Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within theirscope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter,means, methods, or steps.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for operating a gateway device in afirst network, the method comprising: transmitting accountinginformation for a communications device attached to the first network toa proxy device, wherein the communications device accesses a secondnetwork through the first network; transmitting an accounting requestmessage related to the communications device to the proxy device in thefirst network; receiving a response message responsive to the accountingrequest message from the proxy device; and ceasing transmission of theaccounting information if an indicator in the response message indicatesa turning off of the accounting information, wherein the communicationdevice remains attached to the first network after ceasing transmissionof the accounting information, and wherein the communications devicecontinues to access the second network through the first network afterceasing transmission of the accounting information to the proxy device.2. The method of claim 1, wherein the indicator is an Acct-Status-Typeindicator.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the indicator indicates theturning off of the accounting information with an Accounting-Off value.4. The method of claim 3, wherein the Accounting-Off value is an integervalue of eight.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the accountinginformation is related to an internetwork connection of thecommunications device with the second network through the first network.6. The method of claim 1, wherein the proxy device comprises anaccounting, authentication, and authorization device.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the first network is a WiMAX compliant network, andwherein the second network is a Third Generation Partnership ProjectEvolved Packet Core compliant network.
 8. The method of claim 7, whereinthe gateway device is an access service network gateway.
 9. A gateway ofan access service network connected to a first network, the gatewaycomprising: a processor; and a computer readable storage medium storingprogramming for execution by the processor, the programming includinginstructions to: transmit accounting information for a communicationsdevice attached to the first network to a proxy device, wherein thecommunications device is accessing a second network through the firstnetwork; transmit an accounting request message related to thecommunications device to the proxy device in the first network; receivea response message responsive to the accounting request message from theproxy device; and stop transmitting the accounting information if anindicator in the response message indicates a turning off of theaccounting information, wherein the communications device continues toaccess the second network through the first network after the processorexecutes the instructions to stop transmitting the accountinginformation.
 10. The gateway of claim 9, wherein the indicator indicatesthe turning off of the accounting information with an Accounting-Offvalue.
 11. The gateway of claim 10, wherein the Accounting-Off value isan integer value of eight.
 12. The gateway of claim 9, wherein thegateway is configured to stop transmitting of accounting informationrelated to an internetwork connection of the communications device withthe second network through the first network.
 13. The gateway of claim9, wherein the first network is a WiMAX compliant network, and whereinthe second network is a Third Generation Partnership Project EvolvedPacket Core compliant network.
 14. The gateway of claim 9, wherein theproxy device comprises an accounting, authentication, and authorizationdevice.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the communications device hasa service subscription with the second network but not with the firstnetwork.
 16. The method of claim 1 further comprising continuing thetransmitting of the accounting information unchanged if the indicatordoes not indicate turning off of the accounting information.
 17. Thegateway of claim 9, and wherein the communications device has a servicesubscription with the second network but not with the first network. 18.The gateway of claim 9, wherein the programming further includesinstructions to transmit the accounting information if the indicatordoes not indicate the turning off of the accounting information.
 19. Thegateway of claim 9, wherein the communications device remains attachedto the first network after the processor executes the instructions tostop transmitting the accounting information.
 20. An apparatus forcommunicating accounting information in a WiMAX compliant network thatis interworking with a non-WiMAX compliant network, the apparatuscomprising: a processor; and a computer readable storage medium storingprogramming for execution by the processor, the programming includinginstructions to: communicate accounting information related to acommunications session of a mobile station in the WiMAX network, andwherein the communications session allows the mobile station to accessthe non-WiMAX network through the WiMAX network; receive an accountingoff instruction from a proxy server; and discontinue communication ofthe accounting information in response to receiving the accounting offinstruction, wherein the communications session of the mobile stationcontinues in the WiMAX network after discontinuing communication of theaccounting information.
 21. A method for operating an access servicenetwork gateway (ASN-GW) in a WiMAX-third generation partnership (3GGP)enhanced packet core (EPC) interworking scenario, the method comprising:generating accounting records for a session of a subscriber device in aWiMAX network, wherein the session allows the subscriber device toaccess a 3GGP network via the WiMAX network; sending an AccountingRequest message to a WiMAX proxy; receiving an Accounting Responsemessage from the WiMAX proxy, the Accounting Response message includingan Acct-Status-Type indicator that indicates an Accounting-offinstruction; and stopping generation of the accounting records pursuantto the Accounting-off instruction, wherein the session continues in theWiMAX network after generation of the accounting records is stopped. 22.The method of claim 21, wherein the subscriber device only has asubscription to the 3GGP network.
 23. The method of claim 21, whereinthe subscriber device continues to access the 3GGP network via the WiMAXnetwork after generation of the accounting records is stopped.